'Beyond Black Mesa' Half-Life fan film released

Fan-made Half-Life short pips Gabe's big-screen backburner project

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“The best thing we could ever do would be to just not do this,” Gabe Newelltold PC Gamerlast year when the possibility of Hollywood making a Half-Life movie was raised. “Or we'd have to make it ourselves,” he added. Well, indie filmmakers Brian Curtin and Matthew Hall know Valve has plenty on its plate, so they went out and made their own film.

Titled Beyond Black Mesa, it went live this week, and you can view it below. We know this happened a few days ago, but if you haven't seen it yet... it's NEW TO YOU!

Like previous fan-generated shorts – Street Fighter Legacy springs to mind – Beyond Black Mesa has two things going in its favor. Firstly, it's made by people who know their shit and love the hell out of the source material. (You can't survive a day on a film set unless you're being paid well or you really love the subject matter – and Curtin/Hall haven't announced any day-job departures just yet).

Above: This flare-lit interlude is straight out of Aliens. If you're going to steal, steal from the best

Secondly, it's ten minutes long – meaning the stylistic showmanship, overdone orange/teal palette and and action-heavy plot don't have a chance to get on your wick. It's just 11 minutes of “how'd they do that?” moments and winking nods at everything from Portal to Naked Gun. If you like what you see here, show some love below. Then head to the pic's website and let them know what you thought – and how they might fit headcrabs into the sequel...